Tripfilms Blog

Like taking pictures? Try videos instead! 08/05/2008 23:08, by jamay in Tripfilms Blog

You can usually recognize tourists by one of two items – the maps in their hands, and the cameras pointed at whatever object, sight, or person is in their vicinity. I understand the impulse all too well – I came back from my semester abroad during college with thousands of digital images, organized online into location-specific albums. Years later, when I want to reminisce about my trip to Venice, I go to the Venice album, click through my colorful photos of Carnevale, and smile about the memories the scattered snapshots bring to the surface.

While video is arguably a more powerful medium for documenting trips and moments, a film industry expert will tell you that even a very skilled filmmaker needs twenty minutes of footage for every minute of quality film. Indeed, it’s easy to understand why the average tourist doesn’t aspire to make travel videos instead of photo albums – shouldn’t vacation be about taking in the extraordinary sights and moments spent with travel companions, and not about obsessively trying to record everything on film?

Well, on a recent trip to Greece, I realized that gathering the footage for videos – or travel diary videos, rather – doesn’t have to be harder than taking photos. I came back from my five day trip with just a little over 40 minutes of footage – and have so far made 13 short videos about where we ate, where we stayed, and what we did. I managed to squeeze an average of one film out of every three minutes of footage. Not bad, for someone who didn’t go to film school!

How did I do it? First, it was definitely more important for me to savor the moments of the trip rather than try to make perfect videos, since it was a personal trip (vacation, not business). I did not want my travel companion to be annoyed by a constantly rolling video camera. So I accepted that my footage would not be perfect and that the story of each video would have to come to life through the voiceover I would add in later. Second, once I got a knack of the requisite shots needed at every location, getting the footage became almost automatic – and took essentially the same amount of time snapping pictures takes. At a restaurant, I took the space shot – stood back, pressed record, and held the camera for five seconds. Then I did a five-second pan around the room to provide additional footage of the space. I got the obligatory menu and food closeup shots. And a few extra shots from different angles for backup b-roll. Hotels were easy, too – get shots of the front desk, the lobby, the exterior, the bedroom, the bathroom, the hallways, the dining room, and any other important areas, and you have enough to work with for a one minute hotel review video. Each shot need not be more than 5 seconds long, and two of each type – ideally from different angles - is more than you need to be safe. Overall, I don’t think the time I spent sneaking in shots stole any meaningful time away from our trip.

Stitching the videos together when you get back is obviously harder than uploading and organizing photos. You have to review your footage, and think about how you want to tell your story. What do you want to say, and how will the shots you came back with help you get it across? How will you keep your viewers interested? I find that the process is a fun one that ultimately gives me the chance to relive and appreciate each travel experience on a deeper level. And the end result –a short travel diary film – is a much richer and more entertaining souvenir than photos are to keep for posterity and to share with friends.

So, next time you travel, I encourage you to try making videos instead of, or in addition to, taking photos. Don’t know how to edit or don’t have the software? No problem. As grace proves in her hotel review of the hotel she stayed at in Antigua, it is possible to make an excellent hotel review video without any editing. And, as we all know on Tripfilms, there are some awesome rewards for uploading travel videos here. Read our guidelines for pointers, and have fun!